Telemedicine involves the use of telecommunication and information technologies to provide clinical health care from a distance. Telemedicine enables a physician to provide clinical advice, such as a diagnosis, to a patient in another geographical location. Previously, telemedicine was performed using telephones, fax machines, or radios. For example, one physician might communicate a patient's symptoms to another using a radio, so as to obtain advice on the best course of treatment. Similarly, a patient in South Africa might fax his or her medical records to a physician located in the United States. The physician could then make a telephone call to the patient in order to give the patient an opinion regarding the patient's affliction.
However, these basic forms of telemedicine suffered from significant disadvantages. Diagnosis and treatment were more difficult and time-consuming than if a physician were in the same location as his or her patient, as remotely located physicians were unable to directly perform tests upon their patients. Poor-quality transmission of records, such as blurred black and white photographs, could lead to the misdiagnosis of patients. Therefore, a long-standing and unaddressed need exists for improved telemedicine components, devices, and applications to allow physicians to efficiently and effectively provide medical treatment to patients in geographically remote locations.
Citation or identification of any document in this application is not an admission that such document is available as prior art to the present invention.